Caribou Coffee in HyVee to remain open

Search underway for new tenant in DeKalb Caribou location

SYCAMORE – The Caribou Coffee in HyVee will stay as the company closes stores nationwide and re-opens others as Peet's Coffee & Tea.

Caribou leaders announced Monday that they are closing 80 underperforming stores around the country Sunday, while another 88 stores will be converted into Peet's. Fourteen of those stores are located in Illinois.

"While the decisions we’ve made have been difficult for our team in Minneapolis, as well as our team members across the country and our guests and fans everywhere," president and CEO Michael Tattersfield said in a statement. "We are working to make this transition as seamless as possible for the Caribou community."

They will continue to operate 10 Caribou Coffee locations inside grocery stores, including the Sycamore location at 2700 DeKalb Ave.

Roger Hopkins, the economic development consultant for DeKalb, said the developer has floated a couple of businesses as possible tenants at that site, but no arrangements have been finalized.

Hopkins declined to say who has been considering the site, but he said the site is geared to certain restaurants.

"My feeling is that it will at least be offered to somebody else who's in the fast casual dining business," Hopkins said, comparing it to Panera Bread and Subway. "But something not available in that neighborhood."

The size of the space, as well as the lack of a drive-up window, would probably discourage a fast food restaurant like a Burger King or McDonald's, he said. He added that the space could house a specialty retail store like a GameStop or a Verizon Wireless store, but DeKalb has those options available.

"It may be empty until July or August or September so it can open when retailers traditionally open in late summer [or] early fall," Hopkins said.